TCU’s fall camp opened Wednesday morning with a familiar name suddenly in a much bigger role: John Schobel.
The sophomore edge rusher has spent much of his first year and change fighting through injuries, but he showed up on the first day of camp looking like a player ready to matter for the Frogs’ defense. Schobel worked in heavily with the first-team unit, a notable step for a defender whose early college career has been interrupted more than once.
That’s been the frustrating part of Schobel’s story so far. He arrived in Fort Worth as one of the top defensive prospects in Texas, coming off a senior season in which he was named Defensive Most Valuable Player in the state championship game after piling up three sacks.
247Sports ranked him as the No. 58 edge in the nation. But after a promising start in fall camp as a true freshman last season, he appeared in only three games before an injury derailed most of his year.
The setbacks didn’t stop there. Schobel made it back for spring camp, only for that run to be cut short by another nagging injury.
Now, though, he looks healthy again, and TCU seems ready to give him a real shot to help right away. Head coach Sonny Dykes said after practice that Schobel is on track to contribute, and he made clear what stands out about the sophomore.
"He's got good size and plays with a toughness and relentless attitude that I think makes guys at his position great," Dykes said of the sophomore defender. "You look at those guys at that spot, there's a lot of different body types and there's a lot of different things but the one thing those guys all have in common is their tenaciousness and relentlessness."
At 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, Schobel brings the kind of frame coaches want on the edge. Dykes also pointed to the traits beyond the measurements, saying Schobel has the kind of motor that can make a difference.
"I think he has that trait," Dykes said of Schobel's relentlessness. "He's a big strong guy that has some twitch.
I'm anxious to see how he continues to develop. He had a fast start last year and he got a little banged up and I thought it slowed his development a little bit.
I started to see some good things from him this summer and it carried it over to today."
Schobel is expected to keep competing for reps with Koron Hayward, while Zach Chapman will be eased back in. Dykes said Chapman would be brought along slowly, and he did not practice Wednesday. Sources have indicated to HFB that it could still be a few weeks before Chapman returns.
For now, Schobel’s chance is right in front of him. After the injuries and the stop-start development, TCU finally has him in position to show why he was such a highly regarded defensive addition in the first place.
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